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Sarasota High grad spurs SI story

Sarasota High grad and former pro baseball player Mike Ribaudo will appear in the Sports Illustrated baseball preview issue on March 27 regarding once teammate Brian Cole, who Ribaudo played with in the minors and who died at age 22. "He's the greatest baseball player you've never seen," said Ribaudo of Cole.

Published: Wednesday, March 27, 2013 at 1:00 a.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 at 9:02 p.m.

SARASOTA - It's a story that parallels those of Len Bias and Ernie Davis. Star athlete, earmarked for greatness, tragically silenced, his career a subjective projection of what might have been.

Strength?

Brian Cole once hit a pitch onlookers still claim was a foot high and outside. Literally jumping at the ball, the 5-foot-9, 168-pounder drove it more than 400 feet the opposite way for a home run.

Speed?

Cole once raced 60 yards against Jason Tyner, the Mets' first-round pick and a player drafted primarily for his blinding speed.

The last 10 yards, Cole crossed the finish line backward.

At national power Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas, he put up silly, crazy, stupid numbers — a .524 average in 60 games, 27 home runs, 82 RBI, 95 runs scored, 49 stolen bases.

Former Mets general manager Jim Duquette said he was the best player he ever saw. Ex-major leaguer Dave Engle said he was better than Ricky Henderson.

But perhaps Yankee left-hander CC Sabathia most accurately summarized the incredibly short, but incredibly breathtaking, career of Brian Cole, calling him the best player “we've never seen.”

That's the heartbreaking part. The tragic last chapter.

But Mike Ribaudo did see. Much of the time, mouth agape.

“He's the greatest player I've ever seen,” said Ribaudo, a former Sarasota High baseball star who played with Cole in 1999 at Capital City of the South Atlantic League.

Watching the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary on running back Marcus Dupree, titled “The Best that Never Was,” Ribaudo wondered why a similar story had not been done on Cole.

Because of his persistence and connections — Ribuado has served as technical baseball consultant on nine films, including “Moneyball” and “The Bronx is Burning” — Cole's story is now being told.

And in a big way, too.

Sports Illustrated dedicated eight pages to Cole's story in its baseball preview issue, which hits newsstands this week.

“I feel grateful that I got to do this,” said Mike McKnight, the story's author and Ribaudo's friend. “This is a story that a lot of writers go their whole careers and they don't get anything like this. I just hope I did it justice. It's so powerful. Never came across anything like this.”

Cole was a two-sport star at Meridian (Miss.) High School, earning all-state honors all four years in football and baseball.

Primarily because of his size, he was drafted by the Mets in the 18th round of the 1998 draft. But it wasn't long before the tales started, what Skip Johnson, Cole's coach at Navarro, called “fish stories.”

Cole, several times, stealing home standing up. Cole displaying freakish power for a player his size. Cole seemingly always putting the barrel of the bat on the ball.

Ribaudo remembers sitting in the clubhouse when Cole got a call from Florida State head football coach Bobby Bowden, who wanted him to play cornerback for the 'Noles.

In three seasons (320 games) in Class A and AA, 1998-2000, Cole hit .306 with 42 homers, 193 runs, 135 stolen bases. The Mets planned to build their team around him.

They never got the chance. Leaving spring training on March 31, 2001, Cole veered off a Florida state highway in his Ford Explorer Sport. Thrown from the vehicle when it began to roll, Cole was killed. He was 22 years old.

Cole's family sued the Ford Motor Co., claiming his seatbelt malfunctioned when the Explorer rolled. The first two cases ended in hung juries.

In the third case, in 2010, when 11 of the 12 jurors sided with the Coles, Ford settled before the punitive phase. The family won a $131 million judgment, Cole's projected major-league earnings.

“If that doesn't tell you how good a ballplayer he was . . . ” Ribaudo said. “I stopped talking about him because people would either roll their eyes at me or tell me about some knucklehead from their hometown who was really good at baseball.

“I didn't want to hear it because this guy was in a complete class of his own.”

McKnight had difficulty believing it as well, until Ribaudo supplied him with the names and numbers of people either who had seen Brian Cole play or played with him.

Reputable people — Duquette, Sabathia, Engle, Tim Foli, Al Leiter, Mookie Wilson, Heath Bell, Albert Pujols. They all could not wait to talk about what they had witnessed.

“It was the middle of last season,” McKnight said, “and these guys called me right back, which doesn't ever happen. They were like, ‘Hey, first of all, absolutely I'll do an interview with you about Brian Cole.'

“ ‘Secondly, how the hell did you find out about him?' They were almost protective of this secret and they also wanted to make sure that I did it all right.”

Sabathia told McKnight about the time in the minors in 1999 when Cole turned on a 96-mph fastball and blasted a home run.

“This kid was a bottle-rocket,” Sabathia said. “I've never seen anybody with that much power and so small in size, with crazy bat speed and hand-eye coordination that you couldn't get anything by him.

“Each of them,” McKnight said, “to a man, said you have to understand that this is not us making this stuff up because he died tragically. We would be talking about him like this if he were playing in his 12th All-Star Game. This kid was amazing.”

For Ribaudo, an aspiring firefighter and EMT, the story could be the springboard to something much bigger. He accompanied McKnight to Meridian on his research for the story and spent five days with the Cole family.

The relationship allowed Ribaudo to secure Cole's life/story rights. “If anyone wants to do a book, movie or something on TV, it has to go through me,” he said. “(The Cole family) did it without batting an eye.”

The details of Cole's what-if? story, his death and subsequent lawsuit have attracted the attention of a movie production company based in Los Angeles.

One of the company's development heads read McKnight's story and, according to Ribaudo, “loved it.” He then had a 90-minute conference call with the company.

“It was a spit-balling session about what direction we can take this story as far as a movie is concerned,” Ribaudo said. “We came up with some great ideas.

“I see it as a cross between ‘Brian's Song' and ‘Erin Brockovich.' I'm expecting and hoping for a lot of attention on this story when it comes out.

<p><em>SARASOTA</em> - It's a story that parallels those of Len Bias and Ernie Davis. Star athlete, earmarked for greatness, tragically silenced, his career a subjective projection of what might have been.</p><p>Strength? </p><p>Brian Cole once hit a pitch onlookers still claim was a foot high and outside. Literally jumping at the ball, the 5-foot-9, 168-pounder drove it more than 400 feet the opposite way for a home run.</p><p>Speed? </p><p>Cole once raced 60 yards against Jason Tyner, the Mets' first-round pick and a player drafted primarily for his blinding speed.</p><p>The last 10 yards, Cole crossed the finish line backward.</p><p>At national power Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas, he put up silly, crazy, stupid numbers — a .524 average in 60 games, 27 home runs, 82 RBI, 95 runs scored, 49 stolen bases.</p><p>Former Mets general manager Jim Duquette said he was the best player he ever saw. Ex-major leaguer Dave Engle said he was better than Ricky Henderson.</p><p>But perhaps Yankee left-hander CC Sabathia most accurately summarized the incredibly short, but incredibly breathtaking, career of Brian Cole, calling him the best player “we've never seen.”</p><p>That's the heartbreaking part. The tragic last chapter.</p><p>But Mike Ribaudo did see. Much of the time, mouth agape.</p><p>“He's the greatest player I've ever seen,” said Ribaudo, a former Sarasota High baseball star who played with Cole in 1999 at Capital City of the South Atlantic League.</p><p>Watching the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary on running back Marcus Dupree, titled “The Best that Never Was,” Ribaudo wondered why a similar story had not been done on Cole.</p><p>Because of his persistence and connections — Ribuado has served as technical baseball consultant on nine films, including “Moneyball” and “The Bronx is Burning” — Cole's story is now being told. </p><p>And in a big way, too. </p><p>Sports Illustrated dedicated eight pages to Cole's story in its baseball preview issue, which hits newsstands this week.</p><p>“I feel grateful that I got to do this,” said Mike McKnight, the story's author and Ribaudo's friend. “This is a story that a lot of writers go their whole careers and they don't get anything like this. I just hope I did it justice. It's so powerful. Never came across anything like this.”</p><p>Cole was a two-sport star at Meridian (Miss.) High School, earning all-state honors all four years in football and baseball.</p><p>Primarily because of his size, he was drafted by the Mets in the 18th round of the 1998 draft. But it wasn't long before the tales started, what Skip Johnson, Cole's coach at Navarro, called “fish stories.”</p><p>Cole, several times, stealing home standing up. Cole displaying freakish power for a player his size. Cole seemingly always putting the barrel of the bat on the ball.</p><p>Ribaudo remembers sitting in the clubhouse when Cole got a call from Florida State head football coach Bobby Bowden, who wanted him to play cornerback for the 'Noles.</p><p>“He put Bobby on speaker phone,” Ribaudo said. “ 'No, thank you, sir, but if you ever need a tailback, give me a call.' ”</p><p>In three seasons (320 games) in Class A and AA, 1998-2000, Cole hit .306 with 42 homers, 193 runs, 135 stolen bases. The Mets planned to build their team around him.</p><p>They never got the chance. Leaving spring training on March 31, 2001, Cole veered off a Florida state highway in his Ford Explorer Sport. Thrown from the vehicle when it began to roll, Cole was killed. He was 22 years old.</p><p>Cole's family sued the Ford Motor Co., claiming his seatbelt malfunctioned when the Explorer rolled. The first two cases ended in hung juries.</p><p>In the third case, in 2010, when 11 of the 12 jurors sided with the Coles, Ford settled before the punitive phase. The family won a $131 million judgment, Cole's projected major-league earnings.</p><p>“If that doesn't tell you how good a ballplayer he was . . . ” Ribaudo said. “I stopped talking about him because people would either roll their eyes at me or tell me about some knucklehead from their hometown who was really good at baseball.</p><p>“I didn't want to hear it because this guy was in a complete class of his own.”</p><p>McKnight had difficulty believing it as well, until Ribaudo supplied him with the names and numbers of people either who had seen Brian Cole play or played with him.</p><p>Reputable people — Duquette, Sabathia, Engle, Tim Foli, Al Leiter, Mookie Wilson, Heath Bell, Albert Pujols. They all could not wait to talk about what they had witnessed.</p><p>“It was the middle of last season,” McKnight said, “and these guys called me right back, which doesn't ever happen. They were like, 'Hey, first of all, absolutely I'll do an interview with you about Brian Cole.'</p><p>“ 'Secondly, how the hell did you find out about him?' They were almost protective of this secret and they also wanted to make sure that I did it all right.”</p><p>Sabathia told McKnight about the time in the minors in 1999 when Cole turned on a 96-mph fastball and blasted a home run.</p><p>“This kid was a bottle-rocket,” Sabathia said. “I've never seen anybody with that much power and so small in size, with crazy bat speed and hand-eye coordination that you couldn't get anything by him.</p><p>“Each of them,” McKnight said, “to a man, said you have to understand that this is not us making this stuff up because he died tragically. We would be talking about him like this if he were playing in his 12th All-Star Game. This kid was amazing.”</p><p>For Ribaudo, an aspiring firefighter and EMT, the story could be the springboard to something much bigger. He accompanied McKnight to Meridian on his research for the story and spent five days with the Cole family.</p><p>The relationship allowed Ribaudo to secure Cole's life/story rights. “If anyone wants to do a book, movie or something on TV, it has to go through me,” he said. “(The Cole family) did it without batting an eye.”</p><p>The details of Cole's what-if? story, his death and subsequent lawsuit have attracted the attention of a movie production company based in Los Angeles.</p><p>One of the company's development heads read McKnight's story and, according to Ribaudo, “loved it.” He then had a 90-minute conference call with the company.</p><p>“It was a spit-balling session about what direction we can take this story as far as a movie is concerned,” Ribaudo said. “We came up with some great ideas.</p><p>“I see it as a cross between 'Brian's Song' and 'Erin Brockovich.' I'm expecting and hoping for a lot of attention on this story when it comes out.</p><p>“I'm beyond excited.”</p><p>The exact emotion anyone had when they saw Brian Cole play.</p>